Jersey Jazzman: The Friedrichs Freeloaders Go To Court

Jersey Jazzman: The Friedrichs Freeloaders Go To Court:
The Friedrichs Freeloaders Go To Court

Rebecca Friedrichs and her fellow plaintiffs going before the Supreme Court today are those kind of teachers.

Those of you who've been working in schools for a while know what I mean. The kind of teacher who keeps pouring themselves coffee from the pot in the faculty lounge, but never thinks to put some money in the jar to buy grounds and filters. The kind of teacher who eats their fill at the holiday party, but never seems to have their share of the catering bill "on them at the moment."

The kind of teacher who never seems to have the time to show up at a work action, but will be the first to complain that the negotiations team didn't fight hard enough for a pay increase. The kind of teacher who complains about local union leadership, but never steps up and runs for office herself.

The only difference is that Friedrichs and friends aren't guilt of these relatively trivial transgressions: instead of mooching free coffee, they want to mooch free negotiations.

As I wrote earlier this year, some of The Friedrichs Freeloaders, like Harlan Erlich, seem confused about what their case actually is all about.  Erlich didn't like that his union supported marriage equity, but the law is actually quite clear: he doesn't have to support the union's political activities. A couple of quick checks on a form and Harlan can rest assured that his dues won't go to helping make sure two people in love can have legal rights. Because this is America, and you have the right to live in the Dark Ages and be a bigot if that's what you want.

No, what's at stake here is something else: The Friedrichs Freeloaders think they should be - See more at: http://jerseyjazzman.blogspot.com/2016/01/the-friedrichs-freeloaders-go-to-court.html#sthash.FRwk9QYY.dpuf